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Southern Tier Lines by Todd E Humphrey & John W Humphrey Soft Cover
Southern Tier Lines by Todd E Humphrey & John W Humphrey
Soft Cover
96 pages
Copyright 1992
CONTENTS
Triple Cities Tribute 6
Chapter One Susquehanna North 10
The Alcos 16
Chapter Two North On the D & H 18
Belden Hill 24
Rebirth At Conklin 26
Long Live The D & H28
Chapter Three Buffalo Line West 32
Canisteo 44
Chapter Four East Along The Delaware 48
Gulf Summit 60
Delaware Division 62
Chapter Five Penn Division Farewell 64
Chapter Six South Into Anthracite Country 70
Autumn 78
Covered Wagons 82
Chapter Seven New York Division 84
New York State of Mind 92
You've Got a Reason 94
Reality 96
FOREWORD
My inspiration for writing this book was keyed by influential childhood recollections, like sitting on the side porch of my aunt's house on Erie Street in Binghamton, facing the impressive tandem mainline of the Erie Lackawanna Railway, watching the parade go by: long trains pulled by colorful, angular diesels, occasionally spliced by streamlined, distinctive sounding machines I would later recognize as "E-units," busy switchers tugging strings of coal cars, engineers and conductors always quick with a friendly wave or airhorn salute.
Unknown to me at the time, here was a railroad in its death throes. Soon EL would fold into Conrail, a 17,000 mile, government owned behemoth created to rescue troubled Northeastern carriers. The other railroad that frequented these tracks with its blue and gray diesels, the Delaware & Hudson, would effectively double in size from trackage rights granted in formation of Conrail, a mixed blessing that would contribute to 15 years of nail-biting operation.
Things were not the same after these events. In general, rail activity in Binghamton and throughout the Southern Tier declined. By the time I arrived trackside with camera in hand to record the present reenactment of railroad drama, most of these childhood images were gone. Now was the time to capture contemporary trains in their predecessor's legendary stomping grounds before they disappeared into memories as well.
Despite their apparent sameness, modern trains were not bland or stagnant; in fact, just the reverse was true. Sure, Erie Lackawanna was gone, cabooses were gone, early diesels were gone, but the trains that replaced them were disappearing too, faster than the previous generation of iron horse. The Eighties brought unprecedented change -- unraveling of Guilford, advent of double stack container trains, Delaware & Hudson's bankruptcy, dismantling of their Penn Division, Conrail's downgrading of the Southern Tier mainline -- esoteric modern railroads that would bore us well into the 21st Century quickly became relished nostalgia. Even most scenes in this book can no longer be witnessed at trackside.
This publication is not intended to be the ultimate historical and operational treatise on every train at every location in the Southern Tier; rather, it is a personal retrospective of a fascinating industry struggling to survive in a scenic but economically troubled region, a story being played out across our country with increasing regularity. It is a nostalgic look back at things that have quickly disappeared, and a contemporary look at tomorrow's relics.
This book's intent is to embody realism, showing the true face of Northeastern railroading -- snow, rain, dirty diesels, abandoned yards -- it's all here. The pictures are meant to convey challenges of operations, showing their relationship with the geography and lifestyle of this region, where steel rails once were lifeblood of the economy. As duplicate tracks are lifted up and other lines abandoned altogether, locomotives and cabooses retired, towers and stations razed, the evolving portrait of Southern Tier railroading is mesmerizing with its immediacy.
This is the story of Conrail, Susquehanna, Delaware & Hudson, and some rustic shortlines. Emanating from Binghamton, these railroads take us on a bur of the Southern Tier of New York State and beyond, providing us a glimpse of both our heritage and our destiny. The images and thoughts collected on our journey should answer that oft-asked question of why some of us take pictures of trains.
- Todd Humphrey, August 1992
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